Installation of a Skyjacker 4” class II lift info

[JMF661]

Hello all!
This community has been pretty great so far, lots of ranger fans out there with tons of experience and expertise that I certainly don’t have. I’m an amateur wrench, my old man is a pro and gave me the bug at a young age. He runs a 1970 bronco 302 with a Dana 44 solid axel and such, a real nice gosh dang off roader. Anyway, him and his off-road buddies like to cruise around the Mojave looking at abandoned mines and such, I’ve always wanted to join them.
So, I purchased a 1994 Ranger 4x4 4.0l, I have a history with these trucks and happen to think they are pretty great.
I have since done a few things to this truck; new water hoses, belt pulleys, intake manifold gaskets, plugs, wires, starter cables, starter, tires, and other typical maintenance items. (I have even messed up and put Mobil one full synthetic oil in it, leaks like a son of a gun).
So, at this point I’m pretty lucky, I have gotten a nice 4x4 ranger for a decent price, it has a nice frame, no rust, a clean body, the top of the motor looked pretty decent. So, now what?
I put some 31” BFG KO2s on it, great! The wheel wells are full, no travel at all. Time to lift it, I want to off road. Not rock crawl, nothing extreme, just trail it, and climb some steep hills. So I started researching.

Ended up with a used FX ranger 31 spline Torsen rear end with 4.10 gears, ordered a Eaton Detroit locker and 4.11 ring and pinion for the front. Naturally I have to lift this mess, have a skyjacker 4 inch class II lift; radius arms, new rear leaf packs, coils, all the good stuff.
Anyway, I am hoping to make this truck a pretty nasty kitty trail runner, and I think it will be!
if any offer members would like any pictures or opinions regarding the fitments of these parts, please ask me, I will do my best to provide them.
Also, if anyone has any advice I would certainly welcome it!
Thanks fellow ranger enthusiasts!

 

[BlackBII]

The install is pretty straight forward; just remove all the factory bits and replace them with the new ones. You're going to be removing a bunch of rivets, which I like to do with an angle grinder while others like drilling them out.

What are you doing for steering? Also, the 4" coils sometimes only lift a heavier truck(extended cab) 3" or so, so watch for that. You can always add spacers underneath the coils.

Here's some links from the tech library.

Transformer - Part 2: Suspension and Tires - The Ranger Station

By Jim Allen (From Off-Road Adventures Magazine) Skyjacker’s 6-inch TTB lift is a good choice for a Ranger. It’s enough lift to fit 33 inch tires, works well on the trail yet still stays within the realm of near … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

Installing a James Duff 5-Inch Stage 3 Lift - The Ranger Station

The Ranger front suspension is a mix of radius arms, which hold the axle in place, coil springs, I-beam flexing front axle and a sway bar. The pivot points on the frame for the I-beam suspension acts as a track … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

https://www.therangerstation.com/tech/the-ford-ranger-front-suspension/

 

[Shran]

Removal is pretty straightforward... a grinder with cutoff wheels and an air chisel will remove those rivets pretty quick.

Installation tips:

- leave everything somewhat loose, especially the radius arm pinch bolts, so that you can rotate the radius arms when you're installing them
- I install the driver's side beam first, then the passenger side, it's easier to slide the axle shafts together that way because the p/s beam is a lot lighter, remember to clock the axle shaft u-joints so that they are in phase
- install pitman arm before you put the beams in! It's hard/impossible to get an impact on the nut if you've got an axle beam in the way

 

[Curious Hound]

You're off to a great start. I definitely recommend a drop pitman arm. Plus all the advice above.

Everybody says this;

"Removal is pretty straightforward... a grinder with cutoff wheels and an air chisel will remove those rivets pretty quick."

But don't be fooled. That's the best way. But it's still a lot of hard, dirty work.

Let us know if you have any questions. I think I gave some helpful hints in my build thread.

 

[JMF661]

The install is pretty straight forward; just remove all the factory bits and replace them with the new ones. You're going to be removing a bunch of rivets, which I like to do with an angle grinder while others like drilling them out.

What are you doing for steering? Also, the 4" coils sometimes only lift a heavier truck(extended cab) 3" or so, so watch for that. You can always add spacers underneath the coils.

Here's some links from the tech library.

Transformer - Part 2: Suspension and Tires - The Ranger Station

By Jim Allen (From Off-Road Adventures Magazine) Skyjacker’s 6-inch TTB lift is a good choice for a Ranger. It’s enough lift to fit 33 inch tires, works well on the trail yet still stays within the realm of near … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

Installing a James Duff 5-Inch Stage 3 Lift - The Ranger Station

The Ranger front suspension is a mix of radius arms, which hold the axle in place, coil springs, I-beam flexing front axle and a sway bar. The pivot points on the frame for the I-beam suspension acts as a track … Continued

www.therangerstation.com

https://www.therangerstation.com/tech/the-ford-ranger-front-suspension/

The kit does come with a new drop pitman arm for the steering.
I have read that the 4 inch springs tend to only give a 3 inch or so lift. What sort of spacer would you recommend to install under the spring insulator in the front end?

 

[Shran]

But don't be fooled. That's the best way. But it's still a lot of hard, dirty work.

You're not kidding, the Duff lift we did on my buddy's truck a few months ago took us two full days and that was not fighting rust or broken parts... and I work fast... just took time.

The kit does come with a new drop pitman arm for the steering.
I have read that the 4 inch springs tend to only give a 3 inch or so lift. What sort of spacer would you recommend to install under the spring insulator in the front end?

James Duff and Bronco Graveyard sell metal spacers - Duff's are 1/2" thick, BG's are 1/4". Daystar makes a "leveling kit" with rubber pucks that go under the spring. I like the Bronco Graveyard ones because you can stack them and fine tune the ride height on one side or the other if the truck leans one way. Personal preference... you can always just go buy a bunch of big washers too, or use the factory coil spacers from a mid 80's 2wd F150.